Handel in Ireland - Caitríona O’Leary and Dúlra

Internationally celebrated traditional Irish band Caitríona O’Leary and Dúlra, with special guests that include some of the world’s most celebrated Irish traditional musicians and European world music stars. Commissioned by the Händel Festival in Halle, Germany, this production was a sell-out at the Festival in June 2015. The concert, which is devised by Caitríona O’Leary, is Dúlra’s celebration of Handel’s stay in Ireland in 1741 – 1742. Handel’s sojourn in Ireland has become legendary; during this trip he premiered his oratorio Messiah on 13 April 1742 at the New Musick Hall in Fishamble Street. In “Handel in Ireland” Caitríona O’Leary and Dúlra perform songs and dances that were popular in Ireland at the time, music that Händel would undoubtedly have encountered, as well as some works by the maestro himself, re-imagined in traditional Irish interpretation.